BOUND TO THE RED EYES ALPHA

Deep in the forest of Devgarh, the moon hung full and heavy over the treetops. Kabir stood at the edge of a cliff, his eyes glowing a deep, vivid red in the dark. He was the Alpha of the Devgarh pack, and tonight he could feel something in the wind. Behind him, a wolf lowered its head. "Alpha, the sickness is spreading." "I know," Kabir said, without turning around. "And outsiders will come asking questions. No one touches an outsider without my word. Watch the station, the road, and the house at the edge of the woods." The wolf bowed and vanished into the darkness. Kabir looked down at the sleeping town, where a single light flickered near the railway station. "Whoever you are," he murmured, "I hope you don't come." But somewhere far away, a girl was about to get a late-night call... THE CALL Riya had just finished her nighttime skincare routine and was about to go to sleep when her Class Representative (CR) Mrinul called. Her mind raced about whether she should answer or not, as she usually avoids taking calls so late at night. Instead, she decided to send a text first. She messaged the CR Mrinul asking why he was calling, and he replied that Sita Mam (their professor) wanted to talk to her, so she needed to drop by the department to meet her. Riya was extremely tense and couldn't sleep a wink all night, wondering why she had been called. She started overthinking everything. She thought she might have done something wrong and was about to get punished, which left her anxious as she tried to mentally prepare herself to get scolded. She reasoned that if a call came this late at night, it must be something serious—there had to be a solid reason why the CR couldn't even wait until morning. Lost deep in thought, Riya accidentally bumped into a glass, sending it crashing to the floor. Her roommate, Vaishali, Riya jolted awake. Terrified that someone might be in the room so late at night, Vaishali panicked and asked, "What happened? Who's there?” "Dude, Riya, do you have any idea how peacefully I was sleeping? I was having such a great dream! What on earth happens to you at night? Why do you always ruin my sleep?" Vaishali said. "Dude, Vaishali, you won't believe it—the CR just called me," Riya said. "You know, dude, I really like CR. Isn't he so cute?" Vaishali teased Riya. "Don't you think so?" she added, her eyes closed. You're so lucky. He called you late at night- vaishali continued joking. Ok now leave it. I am just joking. "Why did he call?" Vaishali asked in shock, sitting up in bed. Riya sat up as well, turned on the light, and started talking. "I have no idea why, Vaishali, but Sita Mam asked me to come to the department tomorrow," Riya said. "There must be some reason—did the CR say anything?" Vaishali asks Riya. "No, dude, he didn't tell me a thing," Riya replied. "He just said I need to come to the department tomorrow. He didn't even mention a time.” "Let's go to sleep for now. We have to go to the department in the morning anyway. Whatever happens, we'll deal with it tomorrow," Riya said to Vaishali. "Not we—only you!" she laughed, making fun of her. "Oh, you're so doomed now, Riya! Mam's going to banish you for life because you've committed such a major crime!" Vaishali burst out laughing. "Oh, just shut up! Go to sleep and invite CR into your dreams," Riya teased back. "You'll find your prince charming someday, too—someone who's just perfect for you, Riya," Vaishali said. Riya replied, "Just go to sleep! I don't need any prince charming. I'm completely fine on my own.” Both of them drifted off to sleep. They were supposed to wake up early the next morning, but neither of them could get up. The CR called Riya repeatedly, but she was fast asleep. Vaishali opened her eyes and suddenly remembered that Riya was supposed to leave. She tried to wake Riya up, but Riya mumbled, "Please, just let me sleep." Vaishali quickly reminded her that she was supposed to go to the department to meet Sita Mam. Riya bolted up from bed and rushed to the bathroom to brush her teeth and take a shower. She was running late. Meanwhile, Vaishali stepped outside the room to call the CR and inform him that Riya was getting ready and would be there by 10 o'clock. "Tell her to hurry up," the CR said. "Sita Mam is waiting for her." "Yeah, she's almost ready," Vaishali replied. "Don't worry, she'll reach you soon." "Thanks," said the CR. "Mention not! Anything for you," Vaishali teased. The CR chuckled and hung up. The CR went inside the department to meet the professor, who immediately asked him why Riya hadn't arrived yet. He explained, "Mam, I actually informed her quite late last night, so she's just getting ready and on her way." Even as he said it, though, a slight doubt began to linger in his mind. Riya stepped out of the bathroom showered and dressed, only to find Vaishali sitting on the bed, laughing while scrolling through reels. "Are you coming with me?" Riya asked. "What would I even do there?" Vaishali replied. "Mam called only you, right?" "Yeah, but still, if you came along, I'd feel a lot more supported. You could just wait outside, and as soon as I finish meeting Mam, we could go to the canteen together to eat momos.” The moment Vaishali heard the offer of momos, her eyes lit up, and she instantly agreed to go with Riya. They took an auto to college and headed straight toward the department. The CR was standing right outside. Riya was extremely nervous and breaking into a sweat, but she still asked him, "What happened? Why did Mam call me?" The CR said he had no idea. "You must know everything!" Riya snapped back. Vaishali didn't like the way Riya was acting toward him, so she handled the situation by pulling Riya aside. "Let me ask him in my own style," she said. "Only then will he talk." Vaishali went over and asked, "What is going on here? Why did Mam call her?" The CR tried to make Vaishali understand: "I honestly don't know anything. Mam was just super stressed and insisted that Riya come meet her. Seeing Mam like that did make me a bit suspicious, but what could I do? I didn't ask further. Now only Riya can find out why Mam was so tense." Vaishali went back to Riya and reassured her, "Go on inside and talk to Mam. Your CR really doesn't know anything." Riya smirked, "Your majnu never knows anything, does he?” Vaishali gave her a gentle nudge, pushing her inside. Riya opened the door. "May I come in, Mam?" she asked. "Yes, come in, Riya," Sita Mam replied.